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Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Props to Kindle for getting through a whole game with (what seemed to be) a lot of snaps. He set the edge well on some plays which is important considering stopping the run wasn't his strong point coming out.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Albert McClellan - He started and did a fine job. I don't think he's nearly as good of a pass rusher as Upshaw can be or Suggs is, but McClellan could definitely be a starter and/or significant impact player. He plays the run well and I thought he did a nice job setting the edge and turning the runner back inside. The only play I saw him really goof up on was when Matt Ryan scrambled to the right and hit Julio Jones down the sideline. McClellan over pursued inside and didn't contain at all. Had he done that Ryan would have had a significantly smaller window to throw to and a bad angle.

Bobby Rainey - Man this kid is QUICK. He can return punts and kicks, he's a threat out of the backfield, and he's a good between-the-tackles runner. If he can increase his ability to provide pass protection to Flacco then he could really be a nice all-around back. It's too bad he's not a few inches taller and heavier because he and Rice are almost identical physical clones.

KO/Oher - I'm doing both of these guys because I thought that they were REALLY impressive at RT and LT, respectively. Oher held Abraham in check really nicely and KO did a fine job against Kroy Bierman on the right side. I really liked what I saw out of the two of them in pass protection. The pressure Flacco got was from up the middle over top of Gino Gradkowski and Bobby Williams. That was to be expected, but the fact that Flacco really didn't have any pressure from the perimeter was really nice. I know McKinnie will be challenging Oher for the starting LT spot, but if Oher and KO were named the starting LT and RT, then I think they'd be ok. Getting Birk back in the middle will really help things.

Disappointed:
Anthony Allen - Really? Really dude? You didn't want to get hit by a corner? There is nothing worse than a 230lb running back who doesn't want to get hit. He displayed no moves at all. He is purely seeming like a north/south runner and if the hole isn't there then he's going nowhere. I was really hoping he'd emerge as a good back up RB, but right now I think the Ravens are going to go with Damien Berry and Bobby Rainey. They really need to think about bringing in Cedric Benson or Joseph Addai or someone like that.

Cary Williams - Dude, you got PICKED on all night. Julio Jones and Roddy White were making you look really bad. It's not that he was in bad position...but come one man! Play the ball! You could have had at least 2 or 3 passes defensed and maybe even an INT!?!?

Bobby Williams - I know he's still getting used to things and lining up beside a rookie center isn't easy in the communication department. Things got better as they settled down and got into a flow, but the couple of times that Flacco got hit pretty hard and/or tripped up was over Bobby Williams and Gino Gradkowski. Bobby is an experienced vet. I would have hoped he could have provided better communication for Gino out there. That said, I'm sure he'll be fine as the season progresses.

Tyrod Taylor - He floated some really bad passes and was lucky he wasn't picked off a couple of times. It's a good thing he is such an elusive runner because he's not that great of a passing QB right now. I thought Painter looked better passing the ball once he settled down.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Flacco, T Smith, and Asa Jackson were the ones that I thought looked real impressive.

Flacco overcame a lot of pressure to make some pretty nice throws all over the field. He looks really good.

Same for Smith, sometimes I still can't believe we have a receiver that is not only super fast, but has good hands and can now run every route. He looked really good as well, hope the ankle injury isn't serious.

Jackson just seemed to be around the ball when he was out there, made some rookie mistakes but I like what I see.

Was not impressed with the first string OL (as a group), Tyrod, or Anthony Allen. I didn't watch most of the 3rd Q and the 4th Q so no comment on players there.

The first string OL, not sure what the issue was. Nothing opening up in the running game and Flacco seemed to be getting pressured every time he dropped back. Ideally, IMO, Oher moves to RT, Osemele moves inside to LG and McKinnie is back at LT. Osemele seemed to do well over at RT but the guy from the Bengals, Williams I think? He was awful. What is the deal with Birk? Gradkowski didn't look too bad but could kind of tell he was a rookie from Delaware.

I have serious doubts about Tyrod as the backup QB especially if the offensive line does not improve from what it was last night. Flacco has been remarkably sturdy but how long is that going to last? Staring his guys down, inaccurate, he can move for sure, but he seems more like an athlete trying to play QB than a legitimate QB.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

From what I saw of Bajema he definitely looked good enough to be our #3 TE. Of course I haven't seen practice but if he can block decently (and I think he's known as more of a blocking TE) I would be happy with him on the roster. It might have been against backups but he showed real good hands last night.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Oh Gradkowski missed really bad on some blocks early on, but settled down later in the 1st and 2nd qtr. It could have been communication issues. Some of those pressures up the middle that got Flacco hammered, he seemed to be the only linemen not engaged with a defensive player. KO seemed to lock his man up a majority of the time.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Gino should get a pass though. He's a rookie and is learning the line calls and how to read and pick up blitzes. The Falcons knew this and took advantage of it.

I thought once the offense calmed down a bit and got into a rhythm Gino looked pretty good. Maybe not day-1 starter good...but he may be the best back up center this team has had in a few years.

That's a fair quote. I just remember also a sweep where he was to block at the 2nd level and he let his guy past and that guy got into the play. I was more thinking of Joe's health after seeing Tyrod play.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Originally Posted by alienrace

The Bad:
Idiots taking the ball out from 9 yards deep in the EZ on kickoffs.

Ehhh.... This doesn't bother me in preseason (I agree with you if the guy is the 100% starter). Most of these guys returning kicks in Game 1 of Preseason get one shot to do something... They can't show anything by taking a knee. It's not like having the ball on the 12 instead of the 20 is going to change any play calling in Pre-season anyhow.

I have a question about Tucker though... Was that FG a 36 or a 46 yarder? I had 2 kids talking my ear off at that moment and could clearly hear the TV. I swore they said it was a 46 yarder... he made it look like a 36 yarder. I really hope Tucker is the guy they go with. Hell, Cundiff couldn't even get the opening KO right. Harbaugh specifically wanted to see a return. You would think a kicker with any brains in Cundiff's position would put that ball on the 10 instead of 10 yards deep in the end zone.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Gino should get a pass though. He's a rookie and is learning the line calls and how to read and pick up blitzes. The Falcons knew this and took advantage of it.

I thought once the offense calmed down a bit and got into a rhythm Gino looked pretty good. Maybe not day-1 starter good...but he may be the best back up center this team has had in a few years.

Yeah I think when they drafted him, they intended on him sitting behind Birk for at LEAST one year. It's a whole new ball game coming from Delaware to the NFL. I think it shows how much more impressive it was that Joe was able to do it so quickly.

Re: Three players who impressed, three who didn't.

Originally Posted by RedSkins Fury

Ehhh.... This doesn't bother me in preseason (I agree with you if the guy is the 100% starter). Most of these guys returning kicks in Game 1 of Preseason get one shot to do something... They can't show anything by taking a knee. It's not like having the ball on the 12 instead of the 20 is going to change any play calling in Pre-season anyhow.

I have a question about Tucker though... Was that FG a 36 or a 46 yarder? I had 2 kids talking my ear off at that moment and could clearly hear the TV. I swore they said it was a 46 yarder... he made it look like a 36 yarder. I really hope Tucker is the guy they go with. Hell, Cundiff couldn't even get the opening KO right. Harbaugh specifically wanted to see a return. You would think a kicker with any brains in Cundiff's position would put that ball on the 10 instead of 10 yards deep in the end zone.